In the past few weeks, this trend has leapt dramatically. An increasing group of Palestinians are now reconsidering the principle of the Two-State solution - the stated goal of the Palestinian National Movement. This group includes senior Palestinian public figures traditionally identified with the 'Principle of Historic Compromise' such as Sari Nusseibeh (the initiator of the 'People's Choice' agreement), Jibril Rajoub and Qadurra Fares.

Moreover, even President Abu-Mazen has threatened to dissolve the Palestinian Authority (PA) if negotiations fail, while his chief negotiator Abu-Ala has gone as far as threatening a bi-national state.

The fact that many of these statements are part of a turbulent internal Palestinian discourse indicates that they reflect genuine Palestinian misgivings rather than an attempt to extract more concessions in negotiations.

In this context, the Israeli political system's likely degeneration into an election period, the 'expiration date' of the Annapolis process at the end of 2008 without agreement and the official termination of Abu-Mazen's Presidential term in January 09' may ultimately act as a tipping point for an official Palestinian inversion towards the Two State Solution.